Field of the Invention
This invention is in the field of containment of trash in vehicles as well as prevention of littering on the highways.
Description of the Related Art
An existing way of containing trash in a vehicle and preventing littering is a small trash can placed on the floor or other level surface such as a center console. Providing a means for preventing the can from tipping over is to add weight or flaps or both to the bottom, such as can be opened for viewing on a Web browser at: http://sell.lulusoso.com/selling-leads/1142984/car-waste-bin-car-trash-bin-car-waste-container.mht. A disadvantage to this is that if such a container cannot be positioned on a center console or on the floor between passengers, it takes up leg room somewhere else on the floor (and might be knocked over anyway as a result of being kicked).
One way of surmounting this difficulty is taught by several patents and patent applications which suspend a trash receptacle from a seat part such as the top of the seat back, the seat back pocket behind the seat, or the headrest. Most of these contain rigid parts which can be dangerous to occupants in the event of a sudden stop or crash. Those that suspend from the top of the seat back or the seat back pocket are not conveniently used by front seat passengers. There is a U.S. patent on trash receptacles suspended between the front seats, U.S. Pat. No. 5,868,294, but it involves specially-fabricated receptacles, and hanging mechanisms that either span from the driver's headrest to the passenger's or require snaps sewn into the sides of the seats. This patent also discloses a receptacle with hooks for hanging over the middle of a bench-style front seat, but bench-style front seats are increasingly rare. The devices described in this patent are complex and/or require special installation.
A U.K. patent publication, no. GB2439323, describes a way of suspending an essentially cost-free ordinary plastic grocery bag from one of the headrest supporting posts using a flexible strap, but still not in a position convenient to the front seat passengers. Similar drawbacks are associated with U.S. Pat. No. 6,045,019. The '019 patent describes an elongate strap with a plurality of “hooks” (slots or grooves) cut into it at either end. U.S. Pat. No. 5,791,614 describes a headrest-mounted hanger that performs a similar function using both of the two headrest supporting posts on one of the front seats to suspend basically any bag with a strap close to the side of the seat. While it is true that the flexible hanger of U.K. publication GB2439323 and the hanger of U.S. Pat. No. 5,791,614 appear to be low in manufacturing cost, and capable of hanging a plastic grocery bag, neither of these hold the handles of such a bag apart so that trash can be put into the bag with one hand. The former of these has the further disadvantage of swinging on the headrest post during travel, and the latter has the further disadvantage of the bag handle slipping off the hanger during travel.
There is thus a need for an apparatus that permits hanging a recyclable and cost-free bag securely between the front seats and holding the handles apart regardless of the motion of the vehicle. U.S. Pat. No. 8,944,302 by the instant inventor, granted Feb. 3, 2015, describes a plastic bag holder that is similar to the instant invention, however the instant invention represents a significant improvement in terms of accessibility and safety.